Field Expertise

You are able to handle unfortunate break-downs or dealing with other tech on the fly. Add your Field Expertise ranks to any Electronics and Mechanics checks you make, except those for a Role ability.

Also, as long as you have at least 1 rank of Field Expertise, you may make a temporary repair of an item as a single action instead of the full time and at ¼ of the material cost, but at the same DV. The repair lasts for 10 minutes for each rank of Field Expertise, after which it breaks. You can’t perform this temporary repair on an item more than once before it needs proper repair. You do get to add your Expertise to this roll. After a temporary repair, the DV to take care of it is at least 2 higher than it was and still requires at least as much materials as it would have.

Upgrade Expertise

You are able to improve on an existing item by modifying it. This requires a roll with the appropriate TECH skill, but you also get to add your ranks in Upgrade Expertise on top of the normal roll. The upgrade consumes resources in the same price category as the item itself. For the time it takes and the DV, consult the repair table on page 80. On a failed roll, you waste half that time, but lost none of the components in the process. An item can only have 1 upgrade at a time, either chosen from this list or with the approval of the GM:

• Lower PSYCHE loss by non-borgware by 1d6 (or 4, chosen at the start of upgrading). This only applies if the typical loss would be 7 or greater.
• For an item that has slots (for attachments, programs, etc), increase the number of slots by 1.
• Simplify the item, halving the time for any future repairs.
• Grant a one-handed weapon the concealable trait if it didn’t have it already.
• Improve the Quality of a weapon by one grade.
• Allow an Exotic weapon to fire one variety of non-basic ammunition of its ammunition type.
• Increase an item’s SP by 1, but only if it had any to begin with.
• Upgrade a vehicle with something that would only require a Nomad Role Ability of 1.
• Install an upgrade created by the Invention Expertise of the Tech Role Ability.

Fabrication Expertise

This is the ability to expertly construct any item you’re reasonably familiar with. Make a roll with the appropriate TECH skill and also add your ranks in this Expertise to the result. The DV and the time is the same as for a repair. The cost of the components used up by the process is one price category lower than the completed item. On a failed roll, you spent half the time listed on the attempt before realizing you’d have to start over. No components are lost in the process.

Invention Expertise

This Expertise requires careful collaboration with the GM. It allows you to come up with entirely new items or new modifications to existing ones. As part of this, you should make a simple schematic for how you imagine it to work. The GM will suggest what it would mean in terms of rules, taking care to not break any game balance while still getting as close as possible to the effect you want.

To design your item, the GM has to decide what price category a constructed one would sell for on the open market. Use the table for this Role Ability to determine the DV you need to beat and the time it will take. Roll the appropriate TECH skill and also add your ranks in this Expertise. Remember that GMs are human beings and able to make mistakes. They might well decide that the roles for the item need to be changed once they’ve seen it in play for a while. Sometimes this means adding to its capabilities, sometimes it means weakening it. The goal is to not have any one character or player get all the spotlight and fun.

Once invented, you can use the blueprints, or show them to another Tech, to create the item with the Fabricate Expertise, or a modification with the Upgrade Expertise.